


Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Shine On!

by Thorstyr



Series: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Shine On! [1]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon
Genre: Drama, Friendship, Gen, character driven
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-19
Updated: 2020-04-19
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:48:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23731849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thorstyr/pseuds/Thorstyr
Summary: A small Exploration Team deals with the psychological drama and damage of the Pokemon world.
Series: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Shine On! [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1709353
Kudos: 1





	Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Shine On!

“Where’s that damned Poochyena?” asked Croagunk, aloud, out of frustration. “He’s only a Poochyena, he can’t be that hard to spot, especially if he’s shiny like the reports mention,”

“I’ll go circle the area again, just to be sure this is the right spot.” Natu said after a pause.

“I guess I’ll keep looking around the underbrush, even if it won’t matter.” Croagunk responded dejectedly.

Natu hopped off into the opposite direction of Croagunk and took a deep breath of the chilled night air. There was a slight breeze, swaying the grass back and forth and rustling the leaves of the deciduous berry trees filling the area. The temperate climate of the region made the night relatively warm. It was the tail end of leaves-green, meaning it had just started warming up before sun-long. The half-moon above gave enough light to the surrounding environment to see general dark shapes, but details were almost impossible to make out.

_This area should be what the report mentioned… And that was accurate to about an hour ago. If he slept, then he should still be here. If he kept running, then he still shouldn’t be that far. Either way, he should be within the surrounding 5 kilometers or so. Natu thought as he hopped onto the nearest tree._ _Why did they say this mission was so urgent? Was it ‘cause the Pokemon had connections to that Mightyena? That would make the most sense, and if so then this mission really is urgent. This could also just be a basic thief. Then it would be a waste of my sleep time._

After several minutes of searching, Croagunk said “Alte? I think this mission is a lost cause for tonight. It’s too dark and I’m sure you’re just as tired as I am. Let’s set up camp for tonight.” in a whisper yell to the Natu.

Alte started to head when he saw slight movement in the dark underbrush. He quickly leaped on top of whatever had rustled the small piece of bramble. He landed on top of a Lum berry that had fallen from its tree. Slightly disappointed, he picked up the berry and headed over to the clearing in the trees where Croagunk had already started to lay their supplies. The small clearing they were in provided enough space to properly see the sky. The firm, low nutrient soil made plenty of different species of flora spring out. Shrubbery, ferns, bramble, fungi, all swamped the forest floor.

Croagunk had already opened their satchel to take out their small portions of a meal: an apple and a small canteen of water each.

“So… our first overnight mission, I guess?” Croagunk said in an attempt to make small talk as they ate.

“Yeah. I hope the guildmaster won’t be too angry about us taking so long.” Alte responded after chewing on a bite of apple.

“Oh come on, stop being such a worry-weedle! Why would they be worried about time? They dispatched us really late, so they’ve got to expect us to take some extra time. We’ll do fine on the rest of the mission, and the guildmaster probably doesn’t care how late we get back tomorrow. ”

“Ok. You win.” Alte said, still slightly uncertain of the day yet to come.

_I just don’t think this was the mission for us. I’ve been practically useless this entire time. My psychic powers are unable to help, and I’d definitely lose in a straight up fight. Why did we decide on this mission again? We’re definitely at a big disadvantage. Alte thought._

“Welp, we should probably head to bed then, huh? Since we’re done eating now?” Croagunk asked.

“Nothing else to do.” responded Alte.

Alte and Croagunk went around and collected loose pieces of grass and leaves to create makeshift beds for themselves. The good amount of small plants covering the forest floor made collecting plants somewhat unnecessary. The breeze made collecting them more difficult, and they each collected less than what they wished. Each of them placed their small collected piles close to where their satchels already were and fell into their makeshift beds out of exhaustion.

“Alright. See you in the morning, I guess.”

“Goodnight to you too, Dehner.”

The two members of the exploration team slept through the entire night and into the morning.

The next morning, Alte was woken with a jolt when he heard a large amount of rustling behind him. He opened his eyes to see a flock of Wooloo rolling by behind him, and decided that now was a good enough time as any to get up and get back to tracking the criminal. He glanced up at the sun to get a read of what time it was: halfway to sunhigh. The breeze from the previous night had picked up somewhat, making the day substantially cooler. Foreboding clouds had moved to the horizon, ominously signaling a storm to come. Alte hopped over to Dehner’s sleeping body and shook her awake.

“Ughh… What time is it?” Dehner groaned.

“Almost quarter-day. We have to move soon to have a chance at catching that criminal.” Alte responded.

“Alright… Give me a minute to wake up…” Dehner sighed.

Alte let Dehner pick herself up from her half of a makeshift bed to go grab his and Dehner’s bags. He swung his satchel around his wing, with it landing on top of his dark, forest green scarf tied around his wing. The bronze explorers badge pinned to his scarf clinked softly from the motion.

_This wind will make hiding our scents harder, specifically with this Poochyena. Almost any other Pokemon and this would be a breeze, but their species just complicates things. Heh… breeze. Does anyone actually like puns? Probably just me. Alte thought as he moved over to pack Dehner’s bag for her._

Dehner picked herself off of her makeshift bed and headed over to where her partner was packing her bag after the previous night’s meal. Her movement alerted Alte as he was picking the bag off of the ground. He handed the satchel to Dehner, and she took it from him and swung it above and around her head, letting the strap rest on her shoulder. Her bronze explorer badge tinked softly due to the movement of her dulled, red scarf. Once they had packed their bags, they got out their shared Region Map to find where to go next.

“Do you think they went into the Dense Jungle? That’s the closest mystery dungeon, if they went to a mystery dungeon.” Dehner pondered.

“Probably not. From what we were briefed, it seemed the criminal was a weaker Pokemon, and the Dense Jungle is a higher tier mystery dungeon. If they were to go in there, they wouldn’t make it very far before fainting.” Alte responded.

“Yeah, but what if they don’t know that? Or, what if they knew that lower level Pokemon would be sent on them, so they enter a higher level mystery dungeon to have us not follow, I guess?”

“That’d still be practically suicide.” _You can be very smart sometimes, Dehner._ “If I were to guess, they would have left the Abundant Forest and gone to the Low Hills. There are a couple of lower level mystery dungeons in that area, several caves for hiding, and we’re right near the edge of the forest. I think heading there would be our best bet.” _But you overlook small things sometimes._

“Yeah… You’re right. Well, then we should head off, I guess?” Dehner responded at first apathetically, then heartily.

“Nothing better to do.”

The two of them headed off to the left perpendicular to where they came from, northward. Neither of them were ever particularly willling to talk, leading to most of their travel happening in silence. Reaching the Low Hills wouldn’t take long, as they hadn’t gone very far into the Abundant Jungle. As they neared the edge of the forest, the ground became softer, and the terrain started to dip down and lower. The trees that had filled the area before started to thin out, and at some point the trees disappeared completely. The vast expanse of hills spread out in front of the exploration team as they gazed out, trying to spot any other pokemon in the area. The tops of the hills were only around the same elevation as the ground they were on now. There were several flying-types soaring through air in the distance, as well as several Pokemon spread throughout the low-lying hills. It would be hard to spot any specific Pokemon from this distance, let alone finding the Poochyena criminal.

“So, what mystery dungeons are nearby?” Dehner asked no one in particular whilst pulling out the Region Map.

The Region Map answered her question perfectly, showing all of the nearby mystery dungeons, and below the names showing the difficulty of the dungeon. Alte stared at the map, seemingly deep in thought.

“I think going to mystery dungeons first would be the worse option. Look at all the cave entrances. They are probably connected by a network of caves, and are safer than mystery dungeons.” Alte said, half-answering Dehner’s question. “And even if these mystery dungeons are safer, it would take less time to search through the caves than going through even 1 or 2 mystery dungeons. And way less exhausting.”

“You got a point.” Dehner responded.

They looked at the map one last time to see where the nearest cave entrance was. Around 2 kilometers away was a decently-sized entrance against the side of one of the hills. The two Pokemon started down the hill they now found themselves on towards the cave, keeping the map out in case they needed to find their way again. They traveled towards the cave for some time, in their usual silence, until they reached the top of a hill, stopping to get another view of the area.

“Hey, is that Dragonair and Mareanie? Funny how we would meet another team out here.” Dehner said, slightly surprised.

Sure enough , below the duo, a Mareanie and a Dragonair, both wearing scarves tied to some part of their body, were traveling away from the hill.

“Yeah, what mission were they assigned too? I thought our mission was the only one in this area.” Alte asked.

“Yeah, but we moved from where the mission was originally described. Unless you mean the only mission north of the guild, then I don’t know.” Dehner responded.

“Well, whatever the case, we should focus on our mission. We’re already pretty close to the entrance.” Alte said.

“Yeah, I guess.” Dehner responded.

The team of two set out yet again, keeping awareness of the other Pokemon around them who might act hostile. They headed down the hill into a larger stretch of flat plains. The wind rustled the flower-covered ground, which had whipped up a large pollen cloud over the area. The density of the pollen made Alte and Dehner start to cough and have their eyes water. The pollen also started attracting a nearby horde of Combee, led by a Vespiquen. The discomfort of the experience and the general hostility of Vespiquen when pollen is involved in anything pushed them both to start running closer to the cave entrance. By this point, the entrance was within viewing distance. A lone figure could be made out in front of the cave entrance, although it was nearly impossible to make out what Pokemon it was through the pollen and watery eyes, if it was a Pokemon.

_Is running even worth it? We should probably keep our endurance up and tough it through the pollen. Although I really don’t like coughing up a lung over pollen. The Vespiquen might still act territorial around the pollen, though. They usually act more hostile when pollen is around. Alte pondered while the team ran toward the cave._

The figure that was in front of the entrance was gone now, presumably going inside the cave. Why did that Pokemon go inside the cave? I don’t want to deal with any other Pokemon other than the criminal. If we find them, that is. Alte thought worriedly.

Finally, the team of two reached the cave entrance and ran inside the cave frantically, not thinking about the potential dangers of the cave. The entrance was relatively small, and the walls of the cave were quite dry and prone to crumbling off. The beginning of the cave was a fairly straight path, but it split off into 3 paths after a short bit. No sound echoed through the walls except the faintest sounds of footsteps. Alte tried to sense any other Pokemon in the cave, but couldn’t. That either means there aren’t any Pokemon around--which is false, I clearly hear footsteps--or that there is a dark-type walking down one of these paths. I’m guessing Dehner can’t hear the footsteps, as my psychic typing does grant slightly enhanced senses. 

“Dehner, do you hear those footsteps?” Alte asked after pondering.

“No. Can you tell which direction they are coming from?” Dehner responded.

“I think either the left or center paths, but I could be entirely wrong. They’re probably a dark-type too, ‘cause I can’t sense them. The sounds are so faint, and I can’t sense any other Pokemon in the cave. Whoever else is in here must have a good reason.”

“You… Ya think they’re the criminal?” Dehner asked.

“There is a chance. And I don’t think that we should go back outside the cave, so either way we should head through the cave.” Alte answered.

“Yeah… Don’t really want to anger a horde of Combee, especially if there’s a Vespiquen involved. So what’s the plan then?” Dehner asked earnestly.

“I’d say we both go down one of the paths together, that way we’ll stick together. I think we should go down the left path, ‘cause I think the footsteps were the loudest from the left. We really should have prepared better to deal with a cave, like pack a fire stone, but no helping that now.” Alte said, slightly unsure of himself.

“Alright, then, let’s head down there, I guess. We should probably mark which path we came from, right?” Dehner commanded with uncertainty.

“Yeah, we can just mark it with a horizontal line.” I’m surprised I didn’t think of that.

The cave ahead of them was generally uninteresting. The walls were slightly more packed together, unlike the more loosely-packed sediments of the entrance. No stalagmites or stalactites formed anywhere in the tunnel, although it was mostly due to the low moisture of the cave. Nothing could grow due to the complete lack of light. Not much sound echoed through the caves, but whether that was due to the lack of noise in the first place or the walls providing good noise insulation was not clear. Oddly, no other Pokemon were in the tunnel, and Alte couldn’t sense any other Pokemon nearby.

_What’s with the lack of Pok-_

“Any idea why there’s no other Pokemon around?” Dehner interrupted Alte’s thoughts by voicing his concerns.

“No. My only idea is that this area around the cave is not good for living off of.” Alte answered.

“I guess we’ll find out soon enough.” Dehner responded.

The two of them headed deeper into the cave, with Alte leading the way through the tunnels with the ever faint sound of the footsteps.

“You even think the Pokemon walking down there is the criminal? I mean, like you said, there’s a chance, but are our chances THAT good?” Dehner continued to question.

“Like I said, there’s definitely another Pokemon in these tunnels. And they are probably a dark type, ‘cause I can’t sense their brain waves. And I saw a figure enter the cave that looked like a Poochyena, so I think our odds are ok, at least” Alte responded, making up the last point.

“Ok, I guess.” Denher said.

They continued down through the darkness of the tunnels. Then, suddenly, the footsteps stopped. Alte stopped dead in his tracks and started to panic slightly. How much farther do we have to catch up? Does the tunnel split again? How are we going to find our wa-

“Alte, are you ok? Did you lose the footsteps?” Dehner said, almost reading the psychic type’s mind.

“..Y-yeah, I can’t hear the footsteps anymore.” Alte said, still slightly panicked.

“That’s not good. Well, we’re this far already, so we should probably keep going.” Dehner said with sudden authority.

“I-I guess…” Alte trailed off. “I’m just worried we’ll lose our way. Since now we have no sense of direction.”

“If they stopped, then there can’t be that much more to go, right? Let’s just keep going and test our luck.” Dehner consoled.

Alte remained silent as they started moving through the dry tunnel once again, too panicked to think straight.

After not much more walking, the path of the tunnel opened up into a large but somewhat short cavern. The walls of the cavern were still just as soft as the tunnels before it. A small tinkling bell sound could be heard further in the cavern, echoing through the large space. What sounded like clawing and digging sounds also echoed through the cavern. Still having no light source, the duo continued through the cavern, both knowing to keep their noise down and to go towards the sound without speaking. They turned a corner of the cavern to see a Drilbur, wearing a small ball of light, digging through a large wall of dirt and gravel. The light was so small, but it was enough for the Drilbur to be seen. It also provided enough light for the duo to see the shape of another small Pokemon behind the Drilbur. The two of them would have walked directly into them without the light. Alte and Dehner froze, as they could be easily seen if either of the Pokemon turned around.

_What is this? Is the Drilbur working for this other Pokemon? Should we help them?_

“Drilbur, I think this is a lost cause. There’s just too much loose dirt. I think we should just give up.” the unidentified Pokemon said in a caring manner. “I do appreciate you doing this for me, though.”

“I can keep going, it’ll be fiiine~. I think you underestimate how much I can dig.” the Drilbur replied.

"It’s not that I doubt you, its that I doubt this cave will hold much lon-”

As if on queue, loose dirt started to fall from the ceiling. It wasn’t much, but it came in a constant stream, right in front of Alte and Dehner. They both quickly ran back behind the corner, knowing they would be seen at any second. The small stream turned into a near cascade that came from every part of the ceiling. Alte and Dehner began to run back to the tunnel, but the Pokemon bumped into Dehner, apparently catching up to them.

“Wha- Who are you? Argh, it doesn’t matter, just get out of here!” the Pokemon yelled at them.

"Alright, we’re moving!” Alte yelled back.

The now group of three ran towards the entrance to the cave as more and more silt, gravel, and dirt piled up on the floor. The tunnel was easy to reach at the speed they ran, but the massive amount of sediments cascading from the ceiling made the group’s eyes sting. Alte and Dehner reached the safety of the tunnel, but the mystery Pokemon got trapped underneath a larger piece of stone. They barked out in pain, and immediately hearing this, Alte followed the sound and helped the Pokemon up through sensing their heat. The two of them sprinted to the tunnel, with little time to spare. The entrance to the tunnel was becoming smaller due to the dirt piling up in front of it. Alte and the Pokemon made it through, and had enough time to collect themselves and gaze on as the cave became nonexistent. The sediments piled up high enough to block the tunnel entrance, cutting off their view.

“Thanks for the help back there. You really didn’t need to.” the Pokemon said.

“Don’t worry about it. We’re an exploration team for a reason.” Alte responded. _And saving you might make you help us later._

Alte decided to study the new Pokemon more, now that he had the time to spare. From what little his eyes could make out, and from where their voice came from, it seemed the Pokemon was a quadruped. Deciphering anything else was too much for his eyes.

“So why are you down here, anyway? I’ve never seen any other Pokemon go down this tunnel before.” the Pokemon said as the group started to naturally walk down the pathway. The small clanging of something tied around their neck alerted Alte slightly.

“We were trying to complete an outlaw mission, but a swarm of Combee with a Vespiquen kinda forced us into here.” Dehner responded casually.

“Ah, okay. There’s multiple ways out of these tunnels, so I should be able to lead you out of here.” the Pokemon responded in a similar casual tone.

“Since you asked us, why are you down here? You must have a good reason to have another Pokemon with you. And will that Drilbur be ok?” Alte pressed on.

“Why I’m down here is a long story… And I don’t want to tell it to two Pokemon I just met.” the Pokemon responded, with a tang of sadness in his tone. “And yes, Drilbur will be fine. She is the best digger I know, so she’ll dig her way out of there somehow.”

“If you say so.” Alte responded, with suspicion in his tone. “Are you wearing a Soothe Bell?”

“Shell Bell, and it’s a...family... heirloom….” the Pokemon responded with some discomfort.

Hearing the discomfort in their voice, Alte decided to not ask any further. _They seem suspicious, but pretty well-meaning. Should I trust them? I guess I have no reason not to. They could just be keeping to themselves._

They continued down through the tunnel, the only sound coming from their footsteps and the sound of the small bell from the Pokemon. They continued like this for some time.

“Down this tunnel is the way we should go, as long as you came from where I think you did.” the Pokemon said as they turned from the path they were previously taking.

“How did you see the turn?” Dehner asked.

“I’m a dark-type, so I can see better in the dark. It’s a natural trait for us.” the Pokemon responded.

_ Wait, dark-type? Is luck really on our side today? No... there’s practically no way we would have just ran into the criminal. And plus, if they were a criminal, they would have stopped to fight us when we told them we were on an outlaw mission. And I don’t think criminals would act this friendly. Although they were hiding information… This Pokemon really is an enigma. _

As Alte thought through his suspicions, the group made their way though more of the tunnel. As they turned a corner of the winding tunnel, the path brightened up.

_Ah, we’re reaching the exit. Maybe I can come to a solid conclusion once I can actually see this mystery Pokemon._

The tunnel path opened up into a small cave depressed into the side of a hill. The cave spread out to their left and right, with several other tunnel entrances dotted throughout the area.

“Well, I guess this is where we part ways, then.” the Pokemon said.

“Wait before you go-” Allte said hurriedly. He spun his head toward the Pokemon, finally getting a good look at them. He immediately froze in place, going slightly pale.

“What is it?” the Pokemon asked, clearly confused.

The friendly dark-type that helped them out of the cave was the same shiny Poochyena that they were searching for this entire time.

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, my first dabble into writing fanfic! I have lots of ideas on continuing this, but it depends on if I feel motivated enough to continue writing. Stayed tuned, I guess! Or not.


End file.
